Home Office

College of Policing: Disclosure of Information

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the articles of association of the College of Policing Ltd.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The articles of association for College of Policing will be published by Companies House shortly and made available on their website.

College of Policing: Public Appointments

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty's Government who appoints the members of the board of the College of Policing Ltd.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The board of the College of Policing consists of:the College chief executive officer (CEO)four independent directors from various sectorsone chief constableone member of police staffone member from the superintendent ranksone member from the federated ranksone police and crime commissionerThe CEO is employed by the College. The remaining Directors are non-executive and are appointed by the Home Secretary.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Afghanistan: Ethnic Groups

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the threat that the Taliban pose to religious minorities in Afghanistan, with specific reference to the Hazaras.

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the searches conducted by the Taliban on 15 September within predominantly Tajik and Hazard districts of Afghanistan on the safety of members of those communities.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: I underscored the UK’s commitment to protecting the human rights of all Afghan people when I addressed the UN Human Rights Council on 24 August. This commitment extends to all ethnic and religious groups, including individuals from the Hazara community. On 10 September, the UK, joined a multicountry statement with the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance to reaffirm our concern for all religious minorities in Afghanistan, including from the Hazara community, and called for adherence to human rights obligations. The UK Government co-signed this statement alongside the US, Australia, Albania, Colombia, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Georgia, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, and Slovenia.I note a recent Amnesty report highlighted alleged human rights abuses directed against the Hazara in Ghazni province in July. We will continue to press the Taliban to uphold human rights, including those of minority and vulnerable groups such as the Hazaras, and to protect the gains made over the last twenty years. We have said we will judge them on actions, not words. To help us to do this more effectively, we have established an internal human rights tracking mechanism to track Taliban behaviour to inform our engagement. Additionally, we regularly engage with the UN, which has a mandate to monitor and report on human rights in Afghanistan, as well as human rights organisations who are playing an important role in highlighting abuses and violations on the ground.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Public Expenditure

Lord Boateng: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to engage with small development charities in the UK as part of (1) developing the Comprehensive Spending Review, and (2) revising their development strategy.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The International Development Strategy will outline the UK government's strategic priorities and approach to development. As part of a wider engagement process, my ministerial colleagues have held meetings with several stakeholders, including civil society organisations and small development charities; and we have recently closed a public Call for Evidence, which invited views from all interested parties, including small development charities. The FCDO does not routinely run external engagement exercises when developing the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Tunisia: Politics and Government

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Human Rights Watch that there have been “arbitrary and politically motivated acts of repression” in Tunisia since that country’s parliament was suspended; and what discussions they have had with the government of that country about these issues.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We are aware of this report and we continue to closely monitor the situation in Tunisia. We recognise the legitimate demands of the Tunisian people for a better standard of living and honest, effective governance. We believe that the solution to Tunisia's challenges can only be achieved through the principles of democracy, transparency, respect for human rights, and free speech. Minister Cleverly spoke to Tunisian Foreign Minister Jerandi on 11 August. G7 Ambassadors in Tunis, led by the UK, issued a joint statement on 6 September setting out our joint position, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/g7-ambassadors-in-tunisia-issue-joint-statement-6-september-2021

Somalia: Politics and Government

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the (1) political, and (2) security, situation in Somalia; and what discussions they have had with international partners in order to prevent political instability in that country.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: On 18 September, the Minister for Africa published a national statement setting out the UK's deep concern for the escalation of the current political crisis, which risks the safety and future of the Somali people. We are working closely with international partners, including in Mogadishu, to discourage Somalia's leaders from unilateral actions that could deepen tensions or increase the risk of violence and instead to encourage meaningful mediation. As penholder on Somalia at the UN Security Council, the UK tabled a discussion on the ongoing situation on 17 September, following which the UN Security Council issued a joint press statement.The UK is also concerned by the impact of this crisis on the broader political and security situation. It is vital that all stakeholders maintain peace to avoid any risks to Somalia's stability and security. We have underlined the need to restore focus on the priority of conducting peaceful elections, as agreed on 27 May, without further delay to prevent further insecurity and avoid exacerbating the grave humanitarian challenges the country is facing. Likewise, it is important that Somalia's security forces remain focused on countering the common threat from Al Shabaab, who stand to gain from this ongoing political crisis, and progress discussions on a successor mission to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) to support the transition to Somali-led security, in accordance with the Somalia Transition Plan.

Human Rights

Lord Boateng: To ask Her Majesty's Government (1) what criteria they used for including countries in their report Human Rights and Democracy: 2020 Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office,published on 8 July, (2) how Cameroon was assessed against those criteria, and (3) what plans they have to change those criteria for next year’s report.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The 2020 FCDO Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report (AHRR) features 31 Human Rights Priority Countries (HRPCs). The HRPC list was reviewed and updated in early 2021 ahead of the report's publication in July, with assessment based on the human rights situation in country, the trajectory of change, and the UK's ability to make a difference. African countries including Cameroon were considered using this criteria. We expect the majority of HRPCs to remain in place for the duration of this Parliament pending exceptional developments, as this provides a reasonable base-line against which to assess our impact. While the HRPCs help us to prioritise our work, our interests and work are global, as reflected in the many other country references in the thematic sections of the AHRR.

Iran: Political Prisoners

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of violent abuse ofpolitical opponents and activists in Evin prison in Iran.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The FCDO is shocked and appalled at the conditions that appeared in the leaked footage of Evin prison. We have repeatedly urged Iran to allow health professionals in, to assess the situation of British nationals there. We regularly raise human rights with the Iranians at all levels and take action with the international community to press Iran to improve its poor record. At the Human Rights Council session in March 2021, we strongly supported the renewal of the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran and made clear to Iran that their repeated violations of human rights are unacceptable. On 8 July 2021, the UK published its Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report, which included our bleak assessment of Iran's human rights record and our efforts to push for improvements. We will look to use all opportunities during the upcoming United Nations General Assembly session as well, and call on President Raisi to set Iran on a different course by committing to improving human rights and to release British nationals arbitrarily detained there.

UN General Assembly

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are their priorities for global action at the UN General Assembly high-level session taking place on 21 September.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Her Majesty's Government's priorities for the UN General Assembly High Level Week from 20 to 27 September were to secure further climate commitments ahead of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in Glasgow from 31 October to 12 November, to work with our partners to respond to the Afghanistan crisis, to strengthen and establish new international partnerships particularly in the Indo-Pacific region, and to improve global access to vaccines

Iran: Human Rights

Baroness Eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with other governments about establishing a United Nations led commission of inquiry into human rights violations in Iran, including the deaths of political prisoners in 1988.

Baroness Eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made ofreports that the government of Iran has (1) destroyed evidence of human rights violations, including mass graves of political prisoners from 1988, and (2) intimidated survivors and families of victims of human rights violations.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK has designated Iran as a Human Rights Priority Country, and we continue to take action with the international community to press Iran to improve its poor human rights record. This includes using all opportunities during the upcoming United Nations General Assembly session. We also urge Iran to allow the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Iran access to the country, so that he can conduct research and investigations into human rights concerns reported there, including the events of 1988, and the reports of intimidation and destroyed evidence.We have always been clear that Iran must uphold its international legal obligations, including conducting thorough and independent investigations into suspected human rights violations, both past and present. We call on President Raisi to set Iran on a different course, which includes committing to improving human rights in Iran.

Cabinet Office

Civil Servants: Remote Working

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of when civil servants, in all departments, will be working in their offices for all of their contracted hours.

Lord True: Since the pandemic began, civil servants have been delivering the Government’s priorities from home and the workplace. This includes the vaccine rollout, one of the world’s most comprehensive economic responses and continuing to run vital public services.Following the Government’s move to Step Four of the Roadmap on 19 July 2021, all Civil Service employers are making corporate decisions regarding the working arrangements of their staff and a return to greater workplace-working. Departments are gradually and steadily increasing the number of staff in workplaces, whilst ensuring they remain safe and secure through the regular review of building risk assessments.

UK Trade with EU: Import Controls

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide financial support for businesses whose checks and paperwork were delayed as a result of preparing for import control deadlines.

Lord Frost: The revised timetable for import controls set out in my written statement of 14 September 2021 allows businesses more time to adjust to new processes as they recover from the pandemic which has impacted supply chains across Europe. The nature of the border import controls for which businesses are preparing has not changed, and therefore any time or resource spent by businesses preparing for them will still be of value. The additional time will be used to further businesses' readiness for the introduction of these new requirements. The Government also continues to support businesses trading with the EU in all sectors of industry, including putting in place additional staffing, comprehensive guidance for businesses and funding infrastructure to ease border processes.

Department for International Trade

Trade Agreements

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent progress they have made in negotiating new Free Trade Agreements.

Lord Grimstone of Boscobel: HM Government signed a new free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Economic Area (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) in July. Building on the success of the United Kingdom’s recent Agreement-in-Principle with Australia, we have been accelerating talks to reach an Agreement-in-Principle with New Zealand too. We are progressing plans to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and recently concluded a public consultation for FTA negotiations with India, as well as a call for input for new FTA negotiations with Canada and Mexico.